Why Are White Bengal Tigers Endangered?

White Bengal tigers, like all Bengal tigers, are endangered because of habitat loss, prey loss, illegal hunting for profit and conflicts with humans.There are less than 2,500 Bengal tigers in the wild. Bengal tigers live primarily in India, with smaller groups located in Nepal, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Bhutan and China.

As the population of people increased on the Indian subcontinent from the 1940s on, tiger habitat was lost as their native forests were reduced to create land for agriculture and road networks. Also, the mangrove forests, where tigers still live as of 2014, are threatened by rising sea levels due to climate change. Bengal tigers have also experienced prey loss due to a decline in the prey animal populations as a result of illegal poaching and habitat loss. Poaching and killing tigers for the illegal wildlife trade is the biggest threat to Bengal tigers in the wild. There is a large demand for tigers, or pieces of them, for status symbols, folk cures and decorative items.

As their habitat is reduced and their prey animals dwindle, tigers come in closer contact with human settlements. They kill villagers' domestic livestock and have been known to kill people. Tigers are then killed by the villagers.